Fountain pen



Jan. 2, 1951 H. R. FEHLING 2,536,923

FOUNTAIN PEN Filed June 4, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 BY a a. M

P MNM HTTORNEYS H. R. FEHLING 2,536923 FOUNTAIN PEN 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 |1. Y H n C Jan. 2, 1951 Filed June 4, 1946 n NvENToR Yams Y E @002m HTTORNEYS "wid'e temperature;- range.

Patented Jan. 2V, 1,951

mesnenssignments, to Eversharp, h1c. 1111., aff corporaticmof Delaware This invention relates to fountain pens*v and particularly to? fountain pens in which a: baismounted" for'rotaton in ar housing' or setting with part' oftiie:y ball exposed, the unexposed" partN of the` ball brei'ng; in contact?'witlrir a {supply of so* that, asv'te ball" is rotated a the; vgap' iet'weem the bail and its housing: and

. a; thin trace;

.It is desirabi'e toVA provide vineasns'- towfeed ink the gap; since otherwise the1-weare1'ls'for' users clothesv or" handbag. isx liable' to become discoiore'd. Ieinkisfpre'ferably a viscous ink whose viscosity-i's' preerablynot lessthan- 15 poi'ses' at '3W-Y C; It is aiso desirable thatthe viscosity shall have smal? variations overa. comparatively In.certainpriorconstructibns. the inkelaseneen roof 'to-the m11 'uy aa capinawtuue, am in some formes the- 'inkt neem ur-ged? from 'alreservoir toward; 'media-1I by.' pressure: Thedisadvantage voff ther latter construction is that-'i. when themen II; om theotiieir'hand; 'titeeappled pressure were reiucecl to vprevent Suche effectsa it. mem:l notice high# enough to feedl suiii'cientink to 'thei 'ball linden alii conditions:- oif' writing.

IF the ink' fed tof -thefbai from a. capilla-ry tula'e; 'it'` founi -thattemperatureA annif the amountot' ink" charge in thepen sometimesl'as 'Lai deleterious-'- effeciix on its operation, and'- an object of the-invention is. t@ provide-an ii'xs'tru'- ment -of' the a.zt`o1 .esni`f1fV typewhichx ax/'oidsy these erriections andi ,functions satisfactorily under a1 Another-object: of ti-"1ey ypresenty invention tu primitiefy a: -pen 'in-I lwiiicr the writing.

rluntim having; a: writing? portion f fa; nozzle or ynouisingf W whit:

sible. ork sa@ wliicir. 1:surrounds the in which* pressure is automiztlaiixg applied or: in# creased.. urging. theink` toward. theJ ball when the writing portion isi projected downwardly of the anc. rerltucerV .or removed' when the Writing: portion"v is. retracted: into the' pen proper.

A' furtherobject: of thisinvenpn isf to gm'- -vide'- a writing instrument with-1a. retraotaiole writing' 'bali-point. containing; a.. tiexibl'e.. yel'.u asbe ink' container. adapted, to i''ntce; nlr: forwai-diy towardr ipoint andVor removing or reducing:` the?v pressure ini the container' when the bali' point retracted into the bodyV of the pen; f

@ther objects; advantages. wm" become apparent? from following fciescrifption, taken in 'conjunctionwith#V the accompanying; firewmgsiinwhich.:

Fig. 1' is arr enirgni. iongitudiual section', ii Inst-rating;-or1e lzuefilzreri embodiment o'ftne` gres.- entf` invention; showingl the' writing' and: ind; fee@ ing 7portion in retracted" posit'iorrf` Fig*l Qa-similarfvi'ewisnowingf'the writingiand ink' eedn `portieusrin:purine positiont' Fig: 3is detniltakenorr'lfi" Y Fig. 4 isa rfragmentai. enla section. an aiternativef Yco the-disposition y my isotopen-ew reservoir mieu: am Eig. 5fa. 1fragmenta.1bngiindina1` paitly'isec tiona. cfa of 3; showing the disposition or 'trier-1m reserver when empty;

In. the drawings; lil'cerefereiice characters faenote- Ikepart'sf throughout'.

`Referring primariivA to the Y 'odi'ment iiiuss traed 1i, 2; 3*; and*I outercasihg 'Hl ieprevied'fiin-the'form ofk 'aS-barrel orf cylinder. into one end of which is screwedanaxiali/*Bored nosevpiece lllff. orhneartneother' end of said!:eyliid'ewisv aarcipili? ,haviirgffon its under face. a imdb-dik@ pmectoir 15' disposed over fa noie Ai writing balli. il@ is; -imaunted'f` .for Iret'fmion;in hfforms en exten- .stcnoffastenreontiuitfflaxia, passingfthro-ugi nose .piece l'flhavin asnorioe vlf atorfnearftne end remnter rem lsuchiendoitiieeon duitl :isysealed-f` byf ane :encff ciber-ire liga Vscrewed ner end or shoulder 24 of the nozzle ll is mounted a coil spring 25. Fitted within the cas-1 ing I rearwardly of the member 2@ is a sliding cylinder 25. Said cylinder is in connection toward its outer end, with a manually o= knob or projection 2l and at its inner endif-lith a resilient member. it. A spring plate it is diagonally positioned between plug member Ztl and the inner end of member 2t, as shown. A slot 30 in the cylinder 26 receives a pin or stop inember 3| projecting inwardly from the casing iii.

Fig. 1 shows the writing portion of the instrument in the retracted position. It will be seen that spring 25 is extended, the knob 27 projects beyond the rear end of the casing le, and the.

ball l5 and nozzle i6 are completely encased within the open mouth 33 of nose piece member Il. The bag 2l is iilled with an ink, preferably a, Viscous ink which passes by way of hole or orice I8 into and along the tube l1 and an axial duct in the member it to the ball l.5,soj that Q 'theball is fed with inli. k To use the instrument, manual pressure is applied to urge theknob 2l' axially forward of casing I0 with the result that spring 25 is com- ",vpressed, and the'ball I5 andnozzle l are projected beyond theo'pen mouth 33 of the nose ll pelled position. A'ilange 22 is preferably formed in the casing l0 against which, when the instrument is propelled, the forward end of a cylinder y. 36 ,extendsfrom the member le to a position forwardly of the 'ange 22 on the collar 23, and is a sliding `it withinthe casing lll. The member 28 made conveniently of rubber or similar Jmaterial and may be in the form of a hollow cylinder, so that it can be readily depressed, and

yis provided with a projection 39 which may be of .the outward movementfoi theplunger knob and f associated cylinder 25, when the instrument is .in

-A a retracted position, but the length oi the slot .30 permitsthe cylinder to 4be pushed suiiciently `far in the casing Il)l to allow the projection 39 y.to pass through the hole lf3.

It will be' appreciatedthat-,when the instrui ment is propelled into Ythe position shown in Fig. 2, the spring 25 is eompressedas is bagy 2l,

with the result thatpressure is .applied thereby,

-rgingthe ink through the orifice iiof ythe duct '.of conduit I1 upH-to the seated ballV l5.v The pressure applied to urge theink toward the ball will Vary in accordance with the ldegree of fullness of the bag` The arrangement may be such thatjwhen theinstrurnentis retracted, dependent upon the state of fullness of-.the bag, a degree-v of pressure maystillrbe applied to the bag to -f 'urge the ink toward -the ball, but the arrangement and disposition of the'Y parts is such that, when'the instrument is in the retracted position, as shown in Fig. l, the applied pressrewisess than the capillary forces in the gap between the ball I5 and its housing i6, so that, when the in- 4 strument is not in use, there is no appreciable discharge of ink or seepage past the ball l5.

After the instrument has been propelled, and it is desired to retract it, it is only necessary to apply pressure to the clip l2 in the general area above projection I3 to depress the part 39 into the cylinder, it, whenunder .the action of the coil spring 25 the instrument is automatically retracted to the position shown in Fig. l. The sac member 2l is preferably of rubber, as stated,

and is so designed that, when filled with ink, it

A being applied to the ink but this pressure will andiwhen the 'cylinder 26 has been advanced to jv"the requisite extension, resilient member 28 is ".'brought into registry with the aperture d and "part of the member 2S extends through said aperture thereby locking the instrument in the pronot be enough to cause objectionable seepage at the writing tip. As previously stated, in the construction shown in Figs. 1 and 2, it will be appreciated thatthe forcev of the spring 25 varies in accordanlce'with the state of iuliness of the reservoir 2i. This is in'some respects adisadvantage, since, if the retractive force of the spring is sufficient to withdraw the instrument quickly, the spring may apply a greater pressure than'is desirable to the reservoir when the instrument is propelled.l This disadvantage is obviated in the construction in Figa showing a ragmental sectionfof the instrument in the propelled position when the reservoir is full. .t is to benoted that' the construction shown in Fig. 4 is identical with that shown Figs. i and 2, excepting for the pro-vision of a second coil spring 42 disposed interiorly of the spring 43 and the collar lll iitted on the tube 45. The lspring 42 is lpositioned between this collarand the inner end i6 of the nose piece 41. When the instrument is propeiled from the casing li?, spring 43 applies pressure to compress the reservoir 2 l, and spring 4Z is compressed between members ill and the inner fend t6 of nose piece 51.1 '[Spring 42 furthermore is stronger.- than spring fit' and, when the instrument is to be retracted, the main repelling efortis exerted by this spring and it will thus bessen that the retraction of ,the instrument is independent of' the degree of fullness oji the reservoir.

In both embodiments shown herein, it1 will be appreciated that, when the writing instrument is propelled from the cylinder., they extent of its forward movement is independent of vthe state of the reservoir. The Whole .unit-moves in effect as anv integral unitary structure when pressure is applied to the push button 2l. vIt will beappreciated that the only function of lthe spring plate member 29 Shown in Figs. 1 and-2 is to facilitate entry ofthe resilient projection 39- into the apertureit and to ensure that .the instrument is firmly, though resiliently, heldinthe propelled ,position against accidental.displacement. The

coil spring 25 is preferably a comparatively long spring, as shown, to achieve the aforesaid'desideratum, namely that, when the instrument is in the retracted position, the pressure exerted' on `the reservoir is less thanthe capillary forces in .message of resiliencey in writing; the: conduit Hf fulerunrh to a. limited. extent aboutv line; of contact .ate 49f between the member I' and thecasing: 411;, as, shown for example in. Eig.. 4i. That part. of the casing Hf or' 4:1 wherey the membenmakescon.- tact when the nstrumentis propelled may beof conical configuration,v so that the rounded; part of. the, member t6 makes. line. contact, with the .result thatthe. lateral yieldabilityv of. the writing tipi is enhanced.` This. is. an: advantage that it avoidsl a solid feel. when the;-r instrument is being used.

It.- will further be appreciated that. clip member I2 functions as a pocket. clip and, ifv thefinstruf ment is inserted into a pocket. before being repelled, it will automatically be. repelled. by the action. of this clip; this is4 advantageous. and is a. safety measure.

In View of the foregoing, it willbe noted that the invention consists in the provisionof an instrument in which thev writing, and ink containing and feeding assembly is. mounted for propulsion and 'retraction relatively to a. casing and in which pressure is automatically applied, or increased,.urging the ink tcwardtheball.A Furthermore, whenv the Writing portionv of the. instru.- ment is retracted such pressure is automatically removed. or reduced, preferably to a pressure not exceeding the. capillary pressure in the gap between' the ball andits housing..

Furthermore, the invention provides av unit which is mounted for propulsion and, retraction relatively to a casing. and in which, when. propelled, is held resili'ently within the casing, so

that it is capable. of, movement relatively thereto u when the ball is pressed on the paper during writing.

The invention provides an instrument of the said? type-in whichpressure is applied tothe ink reservoir when the instrument is` propelled" and such pressure is removed or reduced. when the instrument is retracted and. in which the force applied to retract the instrument-is independent of: the degree of fullness ofthe reservoir..

TheA pressure is applied or increased when the .1

unit is propelled, and' pressure is removed' or reducedV when the instrument is. retractedv and the propulsion stroke', i'. e., vthe distance which 'the unit travels relative to the casing when propelled or retracted, is constant and independent of the l degree of fullness of the reservoir or the pressure applied to it.

In carrying the invention into effect, the ink reservoir preferably surrounds wholly or in part the member feeding the ink to the ball and means are provided for applying to or increasing and removing or reducing from said reservoir pressure when the instrument is propelled from and retracted into the instrument casing.

While I have herein shown and described only certain embodiments of certain features of my present invention, it is to be understood that they are to be regarded merely as illustrative and that I do not intend to limit myself thereto, except as may be required by the following claims.

I claim:

l. A fountain pen comprising a casing, a retractable writing unit in the casing, means for carrying a supply of ink, means in the casing adapted to exert pressure on the ink in said rst means to insure flow of ink from said rst means to the writing unit, exteriorly accessible means for projecting the writing unit forward of said casing into writing position, and means for causing said pressure exerting means to operate automatically upon operation` oft said. projecting means:

2. A fountain pen comprising a. casing, a. writiing unit. adapted for; propulsionY and retraction relatively of. said casing, an inky reservoir inthe casing in communication with the writing unit, means for applying and removing pressure on the. ink in said reservoir when thev writing. unit is. respectively propelled from and retracted into the casing.. and. exteriorly accessible means` for .propelling the unit from and retractin'g. it. into the.- casing; Y

3f... vAfountain pen comprising a casing anda .proj ectible. and retractable assembly constituting a. writing unit. adapted normally to, remain. in .thecasingn a conduit. in communication with-.the

Writing, unit, contractible means for: carrying; a

supply; of; ink, said contractible. means communi eating. with said conduit,.me'ans: in the casingf tov apply pressure on the. ink-carrying means. to: urge the. ink supply toward the writing, unit, and manually-operable means for simultaneously opj.- erating said pressure applying means` and. projecting the writing unit forward of said casing.

4. A fountain pen according to claim; 3,. in which said contractible ink-carrying means .surrounds an. extended portion. of` the; conduit and inl which a collar is set. intermediate said. inkcarrying means and said pressureapplying means to equalize the force applied onsaid ink-carrying means.

5. A fountain pen according. to; claimv 3:, in which said conduit has` a stop; member and is partly surroundedV by an. auxiliary spring member adapted to smoothly retract. the writing unit into the. casing independently of the. pressurev exerted on said ink-carrying means..

6. Ina writingvv instrument, a casing, alongiftudinally movable writing unit mounted in the casing, said unit including. a writing tipy at its front end and being movable from a retracted position to a projected position,.an ink reservoir in thecasing in communication with the writing tip; exteriorly accessible means for projecting and retracting4 the writing unit, and means inthe casing actuated by projection of the writing unit vfor applying pressure tothe ink in the reservoir.

7. In a writing instrument of the type employing a rotatably mounted ball as the writing tip, which tip is adapted to be protectively encased when the instrument is not in use, an ink receptacle which is provided at its front end with an ink feeding duct leading to the ball, exteriorly accessible means for moving the tip forwardlyV into an exposed writing position, and means actuated by the forward movement of the tip for applying pressure on the ink in the receptacle.

8. In a writing instrument of the type employing a rotatably mounted ball as the writing tip, a casing, manually operable means for projecting and retracting the writing tip relative to the front end of the casing from a protectively enclosed position to an exposed writing position, an ink receptacle which is movable with the tip and is provided at its front end with an ink feeding duct leading to the tip, exteriorly accessible means for projecting the tip, and means automatically actuated by said projection of the tip for applying pressure on the ink in the receptacle, said pressure on the ink being relieved upon retraction of the writing tip.

9. In a writing instrument of the type having a barrel with a tip comprising a ball writing point in a corresponding socket, an ink reservoir in said barrel including a flexible wall and a pressure device in said barrel adapted to react against said exible wall to urge the ink forward from the reservoir in a continuous column lilling the ball socket; the combination therewith of a manually displaceable member mounted upon said barrel and exposing the ball at will in writing or shield- :ing it in non-writing position, and means under control of said displaceable member to relieve `the pressure exerted by said pressure device when said member is in point shielding position.

10. A writing instrument of the ball point type, comprising a barrel having a writing ball point at the forward end thereof, a socket accommo- -dating said ball point, said barrel having an ink reservoir therein in communication with said socket, said reservoir including a flexible wall element, a pressure device in said barrel adapted -to'react against said flexible wall to propel the ink forward from the reservoir and to maintain the ball socket lled, a member mounted on said barrel maintaining the writing point in shielded position while out of use, and during editing coacting with the rear part or" the ca el, said member when in the latter position coacting with the pressure device to activate the same.

ll. In a writing instrument of the type coin*- prising a barrel with a tip having a ball writing point in a corresponding socket, an ink reservoir rin said barrel including a flexible Wall and a device in said barrel adapted to react against said ilexible wall to urge the forward from ti: reservoir in a continuous column filling the ball socket; the combination therewith ci an end member on the rear f the barrel and having two settings in one oi' which the point is in retracted, inoperative, shielded position and in the other or which the point is in advanced operative and protruding position, said elements being constructed and arranged to activate said pressure device in the writing setting and to render said device ineffective in the non-Writing setting of the instrument.

12. A writing instrument of the type comprising a barrel, a cartridge therein having a ball Writing point lodged in a corresponding socket at the forward end thereof, an operi 'ing n'ieinber at the rear of the barrel coacting with said cartridge alternatively to dispose the point thereof in advanced or Writing position or in retracted or shielded position, said cartridge having an ink reservoir with a flexible wall element, a pressure device Within said cartridge adapted to react against said flexible Wall to urge the ink content forward, said operating member being correlated with said pressure device for substantially inoperative condition thereof when the cartridge is retracted and to render the same effective when the cartridge is in advanced or writing position.

13. A writing instrument comprising a barrel, a writing tip, an ink supply means, an ink feeding means for said tip, all contained in said barrel; and means operable to condition said instrument for writing purposes and simultaneously to bring about the exertion of pressure on the ink in said supply means to feed said ink to said ink feeding means,

14. The combination recited in claim i3 in which the ink feeding means is a ball point, the barrel has a normally7 inactive ink propulsive agency conned therein and the means operable 'to condition the instrument is interrelated with said ink propulsive agency to set the saine into action upon operation or" said conditioning means.

15. The combination recited in claim 13 in which the ink feeding means is a ball point, the barrel has a normally inactive ink propulsive member coni-ined therein and the means operable to condition the instrument comprises a member on the barrel manually displaceable preparatory to writing, to set the ink propulsive member into action. vHANS R. FEELING.'

REFERENCES CTEID The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Chesler Dec, 2, 1947 

